Car coupler



Jan. l2 1926.

T. HOTCHKISS CAR COUPLER Filed Feb. 21', 1925 s sheets-sheet 1 ATTORNEYT, HOTCHKISS Jan. 12 A, 1926.Y

cA'coUPLER 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 21

ATTORNEY v Jan. 12,1926.

T. HOTCHKISS GAR coUPLER Filed Feb. 21, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 I 7/ 7gATTORNEY Patented Jan. 12, 1926.

unirse. STATES THOMAS Ho'cronkss or GinLE'sin; rem-Nors- CAR cour-LER.

Application ledy February il, 925'; Serial No. 10,898.

TonZZ whom it may concern n Be it knurn that I, TrroMAs Ho'roI-Irirss, acitizen of' the United States of America, and resident of Gillespie, in;the county of Macoupin and Sta-te of Illinois, have invented certainnew' and useful.Improvements in Car Couplers, of which the following isa specication.

This invention relates to carA couplers, and particularly t a couplerdesigned for use on ininecars or' other dumping cars, and it is anobject of this invention to produce couplers which, When properly setprior to the approach of one coupler with relation to the` other,-vivill automatically interlock in a manner to produce a streng, rdurableand efficient connection.

It isy a further object or this invention to produce a coupler of thecharacter indicated having means whereby the couplers niay be used withlinks and pins, soV that if parts of the auto-rnat-ic coupling devicesarev impaired, the cars in ay be used with such link and pinconnections.

It is a still furtherV object ofthisv invention to produce a coupler ofthe character indicated having a dravv-bar which is rotatably appliedtothe car or car traine so that the cars inay dump sidevise vvithoutiinpai'ring the couplers or: disconnecting the saine.Y

lVi-th the foregoing and other objects in View', the invention consistsin the details ol construction, and in' the aI-'rangeinent andconibination ot parts to he hereinafter more lnlly set forth andclaimed. f

In describing thev invention inv detail,- reference will be hadA to theac'fconil'qaiiyingy drawingsforrning part of this application whereinlike characters denote corresponding parts inl the several viei'vs, andin Which- Fignre' l illustrates a top plan View of the car coupler headsconnected together, associated With the tasteningsror retaining themcoupled;

Figure 2 illustrates avertical sectional View thereof when in a coupledstate;

Figure 3 illustrates a sectional view of fragments of the couplers inpositions assumed during the coupling operation or the interengageinentof the. coupler heads:

Figure t illustrates a similar vieu7 showing an advanced step in thecoupling operation;V l

igure 5v illustrates a View in side elevationof a 'coupling latch;

Figure 6 illustrates a vertical section on theline 6 6 of Fig. 5;

yFigure.7 illustrates a side view of the inain shaft; l

Figure 8 illustrates an end elevation of thesaine; y

yFigure 9 illustrates a sectional View on the line 9f9 of Fig. .7

Figure 10: illustrates a sectional View on thfe line lO'-l0 of Fig. 7 ;y

Figure Il illustrates a view in side eleration of the couplersv in theircoupled conditill;

Figure 12v illustrates a. view in elevation of the couplers in slightlyseparated positions;

Figure L13 lillustrates a view in side elevation, partly in section,shouting'. the link and pin coime'ction associated With the said cou- Firie 14 illustrates an enlarged detail View .of @ne of the eoupref heads,

Figuire15' illustrates a top' plan View thereo ;y

y Figure 16 illustrates a central vertical longitudinal vsectioi'ithereof, taken on the une 16416 of Fig. 15;

'Eig-ure' 17 illustrates an' end view thereof Figure 18 illutrates atransverse vertical section] of the cupler on the line 18-18 otFigi-,16;

,Figure 19' illustrates a vieiv in side elevati'on', partly in section,of the coacting couplei" had;

Figure 2'0 illustrates a top plan view therei vigure 2l illustrates alongitudinal vertical sectin taken 0n the line 21-21 of Fig. 20;

Figurey 22 illustrates a view in elevation of thebfront end of the saidcoupler head;

Figure 2 3 illustrates a View in elevation of ,the latchv trippingdevice; and

Figure 24 illustrates a detail view of the coupling pin.

In these drawings, 3() and 3l denote the coactiiig conpl'erheads, 1andeach' is preferably arsoei'ated with a draw-bar 32 rotatably mountedrin' a bracket or housing 33' which may be attached to the car frame. Thedraw-bar has reciprocal motion 1n the frame ,=or housing, and isassociated with a spring 34 which serves to absorb jar and vibration,due to the action of the coupler. A drawbar is connected to each head bya pin 35, and preferably a buffer spring 36 is interposed between thecoupler head and the housing. xs shown in the drawing the said draw-baris rotatable so that a car equipped with the coupler may turn sidewiseindependently of the coupler and without interfering with theinterlocking engagement of the coupler heads of the two cars.

fhe coupler head 30, which may be termed a female coupler head, has amain shaft 37 extending transversely thereof, and the said shaft isrotatably mounted in the sides of the coupler head. The coupler head 30has a recess or cavity to receive the projectingportions of the couplerhead 3l.

T he main shaft has a portion between its ends shaped with a straightside 38 and an oppositely curved surface 32), which curved surfaceconstitutes a cam to be engaged by the projecting portions of thecoupler 3l, for the purpose of imparting rotary motion to the said mainshaft. The main shaft has portions40 and 4l which are trunnioned in theside walls of the coupler 30 and it has ends which project beyond theside walls on which the body 42 of the latch 43 is secured in orderIthat the latch will oscillate as the main shaft partially rotates. Thecoupler head 30 has lugs 44 on its sides near the lower edge thereof,and each side of the body of the latch has shoulders 45 which engage thelugs to limit the rearward oscillatory motion of the said latch. Thecoupler head is also provided with apertured bosses 46 and 4T which arein vertical alinement on its side, for the purpose of receiving as aplace of storage the coupling` pin 48, when the same is not in use forconnecting the couplers by link and pin. The upper and lower walls ofthe'coupler head 3l) have alining apertures-42) and 50 to receivethecoupling pin 48 when the coupler heads are to be connected by a pin 48and links such as 51 which are anchored to the opposite coupler head 3lin known manner.

lt will be understood, therefore, that the coupler head 30 has provisionfor causing the coupler heads to be connected through the operation ofthe latch, or through the use of a link and pin.

When the coupler heads are to be connected and locked into engagementwith each other by the latch, the hooks 52 of the latch interlockvv-iith lugs 53, both of which are formed preferably integral with theouter side of the coupler head 3l, it being shown that the engagingsurfaces of the hooks and the engaging surfaces of the lugs arecomplemental in configuration so that a close joint or connection isestablished between these two interlocking members of the cou- 1 Thelatch body has two cheek pieces, one of which swings parallel with andpractically in engagement with one side of the coupler head 31, and theother cheek piece swings parallel and practically in engagement with theopposite side of the coupler head 3l, and the hooks constituteextensions of said cheek pieces.

The coupler head 3l has an extension or nose 54 projecting from itsforward end. This nose has parallel sides and it enters the recess orcavity in the front end of the coupler head 30. The extension 54 has alongitudinally extending' slot 55 in its end that merges with a cavity56 whose major axis extends vertically, and the cavity has a rear wall57 which constitutes an abutment for the cumming surface of the mainshaft, and it is effective to partially rotate the main shaft when thetwo coupler heads have been forced together fully. The upper wall 58 ofthe extension formed in the production of the slot 55 coacts with themain shaft initially when the couplers are moved together, and theengagement of the upper wall 58 with the camming surface 39 of the mainshaft serves to partially rotate the main shaft and raise the latch inorder that a clearance may be produced for the movement of the couplerheads together. The partial rotation of the main shaft causes the partsto assume the positions shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, and the fla-tside of the main shaft passes through the slot 55 to the cavity 56. Asthe coupler heads are further moved in the direction of the arrow shownin Fig. 4, the main shaft will be caused to strike the wall 57 of thecavity, and the camming action of these engaging parts will cause thelatch to be swung downwardly in order that the hooks of the latch willinterlock with the lugs 53 of the coupler head 31, and when the partsare in this interlocked state, the main shaft will appear in the cavity56, as it is illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawing. It is shown that thatportion 59 of the extension below the slot 55 is shorter than thatportion above the slot 55, and the portion 59 of the extension has ashoulder 60, which, with the shoulder 61 on the p0rtion of the extensionabove the slot 55, will cooperate with the flat side of the main shaftso that the couplers cannot become unlocked until the latch is elevatedmanually.

As a means for swinging the latch upwardly, a cable or flexible element62 has its ends secured in an eye 63 of the latch, and the said cable oriiexible element 62 operates over a pulley or sheave 64 on a shaft 65that mayv be operated by the crank handles 66 fr n either side of thecar when the latch is to be moved for releasing the coupler (ifi llt)

heads. F rom an inspection o-f the drawing and from the foregoingdescription, .it Will be apparent, therefore, that when the couplerheads are moved together, the extension 54 will pass into the cavity ofthe coupler head 30, and the projection 58 of the extension 5.4 willengage the camming surface 39 of the main shaft and impart rotary motionto the said shaft. This motion, in turn, will be communicated to thelatch and it ivill be elevated clear of the lugs 53 of the coupler head3l. Vhen the coupler heads have been moved together to the limit oftheir capacity, the camming surface 39 of the main shaft will haveengaged the rear Wall of the cavity and a reverse partial rotation ofthe main shaft ivill lie imparted to it. and the latch Will descend sothat its hooks will engage the lugs 53 of the coupler 3]..

The coupler head 3l has a longitudinally extending' slot 67 andtransversely extending slots 68 and 68 intersecting it, which constituteseats for a similarly shaped coupler lock shift pin 69 Whose lateralextension 7 0 lies in the cavity 68 when in one position of adjustment.

The term latch7 has been used in referring to the element that engagesthe lugs 53 of the coupler head 3l and by that term it is to beunderstood that applicant intends to include any element that might beoscillatably supported by the main shaft to interlock ivith elements ofthe opposite coupler head substantially as the element functions in theinvention disclosed herein.

The pin 69 may be employed for holding the latch closed when it isprojected into the aperture 69a formed in said latch, and when in saidposition, the extension 70 of the latch will be seated in theintersecting slot 68 of the coupler head 3l so that the locking pincannot be moved longitudinally until the lateral extension of thelocking pin is raised4 from the seat 68a.

The coupler heads have longitudinally extending channels 7l and 72, oneon each side near the botto-1n, which are intended for electric cablesand air line connections, respectively, when such equipment is desired.

The coupling pin has projections eX- tending from each side that areintended to enter recesses or slots 76 at the edge of aperture 49 of thecoupler head 30. The recesses 76 communicate or merge with annularrecesses 77 and it is the purpose of the inventor that the relation ofparts shall be such that when the pin 48 is applied to the apertures 49and 50 of the coupler head 30, the extension 75 of the coupler pin shallpass into the recesses 76 and the annular recesses 77 in order that whenthe pin is applied tothe apertures 49 and 50 and turned slightly, theextension 75 of the pin will be out of registry with the recesses 7 6, acondition which will prevent the pin from being unseated when the carsare til-ted. The boss 46 has recesses 46n in its upper edge to receivethe pins or extension 75 when the coupler pin is being stored.

The outer crank handle 66 may be manually operated from the side of thecar and the inner crank handle 66 is intended to be tripped or moved bya tripping device Which abuts the said inner crank handle as the car ismoved toward the trip, altl'iough provision is made for displacing thetrip so that it Will not be inthe path of travel of the inner crankhandle when it is desired to allo-W cars to pass the location of thetrip.

To thel end just stated, a handle SO is oscillatably mounted on a pivot8l. A link 82 has its ends mounted on pivots 63, one of vrhich connectsthe link to the handle 8O and s the other of which connects the link tothe trippingfarm 84, which tripping arm is oscillatable on a pivot 85,so that if the handle 8O is pushed or pulled to oscillate it on itspivot, the con nection between it and the tripping arm 84 will result inmoving the tripping arm out of the path of travel of the inner crankhandle 66, and when in such position, the car will pass Without thecoupler being o-pened. kind, cars may be disconnected at any stationhaving a tripper, or they may be disconnected at other localities by theuse of Athe manually operated crank handle.

lf claim:

l. Ina car coupler, a coupler head having a cavity in its end, a mainshaft rotatably mounted transversely of the coupler head in the saidcavity, the said coupled head having a camming surface, a latch carriedby the said shaft, a coacting coupler head having a projection adaptedto enter the cavity of the first n'ientibncd coupler head, the saidprojection having a construction for engaging the cumming surface of theshaft for in'ipartingl rotary motion lo the said shaft-and oscillatingthe latch, al surface for engaging the camming surface of the shaft forturning the said shaftin an opposite direction when the coupler headsare together for moving the latch in an opposite direction, and coactingelements on the second mentioned coupler head engaged by the latch forlocking the coupler heads together.

2. In a car coupler, a coupler head having a cavity in its end, a mainshaft rotatably mounted transversely of the coupler head in the saidcavity, the said coupler head having a camming surface, a latch carriedby the said shaft, a coacting coupler head having` a projection adaptedto enter the cavityT of the first mentioned coupler head, the saidprojection having a construction for engaging the camming surface of Bythe usel of a tripper of this 9 the shaft for imparting rotary motion tothe said shaft and oscillating' the latch, a surface for engaoing theean'nning surface of the shaft for turningy the said shaft in anopposite direction when the coupler heads are together for moving' thelatch in an opposite direction, coacting elements on the secondmentioned coupler head engaged by the latch for locking the couplerheads together, and means for holding' the latch in said last mentionedposition.

3. ln a car coupler, a coupler head having' a cavity' in its end, a mainshaft rotatably inounted transversely of the coupler head in the saidcavity, the said coupler head having' a cannninp surface, a latch cai'-ried by the said shaft, a coacting coupler head having' a projectionadapted to enter the cavity of the first mentioned coupler head, thesaid projection having a construction for engaging the cammina` surfaceof the shaft for imparting` rotary motion to the said shaft andoscillating` the latch, a surface for engaging' the cammina' surface ofthe shaft for turning,v the said shaft in an opposite direction when thecoupler heads are together for moving' the latch in an oppositedirection, coactine` elements on the second mentioned coupler headengaged by the latch for locking the coupler heads together, and meansexteriorly of the coupler heads connected to the latch for disengagingit from the coacting` coupler head.

e. ln a car coupler, a coupler head having' a cavity in its end, a mainshaft rotatably mounted transversely of the coupler head in the saidcavity, the said coupler head having' a camming surface, a latch carriedby the said shaft, a coacting coupler head having a projection adaptedto enter the cavity of the first mentioned coupler head, the saidprojection having a construction for engaging the cammina' surface ofthe shaft for imparting' rotary niotion to the said shaft andoscillating' the latch, a surface for engaging the cannning' surface ofthe shaft for turning the said shaft in an opposite direction when thecoupler heads are together for n'iovingl the latch in an oppositedirection, coacting elements on the second mentioned coupler headengaged by the latch for locking' the-coupler heads together, draw-barsconnected to the said Coupler heads, and-means for rotatably mounting'the draw-bars on cars.

n a car coupler, a coupler head having a cavity in its end, atransversely extending shaft rotatably mounted in the cavity, the saidshaft having' a portion provided with a straight side and the oppositecurved side forming' a cani, a latch secured on the said shaft to beoscillated as the shaft partially rotates, a reacting' coupler headhaving a projection adapted to enter the cavity of the tirst mentionedcoupler head, thesaid extension being longitudinally slottedapproximately centrally of its height, the said slot terminating` in acavity Whose major axis extends vertically, the said cavity having arear vfall adapted to engage the cammina' surface of the shaft When thecoupler heads together, and the forward end of vthe projection above theslot being adapted to engage the camming surface of the said shaft forrotating` the said shaft in a direction opposite to that in which it isrotated when it encounters the rear Wall of the recess.

6. In a car coupler, a coupler head having a cavity in its end, a shaftrotatably mounted in the cavity transversely of the coupler head, a canion said shaft, a latch carried by the shaft, a coacting:r coupler headhavingr a projection adapted to enter the cavity, means on theprojection engaging the cain for rotating the shaft in one direction,means on said projection in stepped relation to the first mentionedmeans for engaging the cam and rotatingl the shaft in anioppositedirection, and a latch engaged means on the second mentioned couplerhead with relation to which the latch is moved ly the rotation of thesaid shaft. i

'PHOMA S IilO'lC/HKISS.

Cil

